The singer has been accused of “spreading fake information about the Russian armed forces”, according to BBC
Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, many Ukranians have spoken out about the horrors they now face on a daily basis. One of those outspoken Ukranians is 2016 Eurovision champion Jamala. After the invasion and war broke out, Jamala and her family fled to Australia, where Jamala has continued to speak out about what’s happening in her home country. One of the things Jamala spoke about was “atrocities comitted in the Ukranian town of Bucha” back in 2022. And now, Jamala is wanted by the Russian government for spreading fake information about what happened in the town. According to Kremlin, they did not commit the attack on Bucha, even though there is plenty of evidence to pin the attack on the Russian army.
Jamala and politics
From her time in Eurovision, Jamala has never shyed away from political topics. She won with the song 1944, which was supposedly about the forced deportation of Crimean people by Russia during WW2. However, in 2014, Russian soldiers annexed Jamala’s home island Crimea, and it has been heavily suggested that the song is in fact about that. Some people tried to get her disqualified on grounds that Eurovision songs are not supposed to be political. Nevertheless, the EBU maintained that the song is historical, not political, and Jamala went on to win the contest. You can see her perform the powerful song right here:
Jamala responded to being placed on the Russian wanted list with a story on Instagram in which she stands in front of the Sydney Opera House. The picture contained a link to the article and a facepalm emoji.
You can read more about Jamala’s placement on the Russian wanted list in this BBC article.
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